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Over the past year or so we've seen the media and telecommunications industries experiencing a transformation of seismic proportions resulting in a hothouse of opportunities within the space where technology and communication converge.
IPTV has emerged as the most revolutionary service proposition that is not only changing the industry, but also the way we consume entertainment.
The Asian Factor What may be surprising to many people is the fact that Asia is leading the IPTV revolution and is the fastest growing market for IPTV with subscribers set to double in the next 12 months (Source: Gartner, March 2005), followed by Europe and the U.S. as a distant third. A recent study by the Yankee Group has shown that IPTV services have been launched or trialling in seven out of 13 Asia-Pacific economies and a look at developments and data across key Asian countries paint a picture of a region that is poised more than any other region to take advantage of the communications revolution:
While Asia as a region is far from homogeneous, there are a number of common factors across many countries which have provided a fertile ground for telecommunications operators here to venture into the IPTV arena. First of all, telcos in Asia tend to have the advantage to be well financed and to have existing connectivity to a much larger number of homes than other platforms such as cable or satellite. Secondly, Asia, and particularly China, is leading the world in broadband penetration growth, indicating that the bulk of global IPTV subscribers will come from this region. The broadband explosion in Asia is connected to the strong overall economic outlook for the region which is set to bring increased affluence to many countries in the coming years, fuelling growing entertainment consumption and demand for choice which is where IPTV with channel variety Thirdly, ADSL with at least 6.0 Mbps to households is more widespread in Asia (95% in Hong Kong) thanks in part to geographic densities. And finally, governments in many countries have embraced the broadband platform and are smoothing the way for the industry. However, the many similarities across Asian Pacific countries that work in favour of IPTV don't mean that what works in one country must work everywhere else – quite the opposite. One of the most important exercises for operators in Asia and elsewhere is a careful market analysis to gauge market dynamics, challenges and opportunities to determine the most appropriate and, ultimately, successful service strategy. page 1 of 3 |
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